Loading and unloading apparatus.



PATENTED JUNE 21, 1904..

ALR. HOLMEN. LOADING AND UNLOADING APPARATUS APPLIOATION FILE D MAR.12,1904.

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' WITNESSES:

ATTORNEYS PATENTED JUNE 21; 1904,

A. RQ HOLMEN. LOADING AND UNLOADING APPARATUS.

APPLICATION FILED MAR.12. 1904.

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ATTORNEYS.

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Patented June 21, 1904.

PATENT OFFICE.

AXEL R. HOLMEN, OFCOLUMBUS, OHIO.

VLOADING AND UNLOADING APPARATUS.

' SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 763,182, dated June21, 1904.

Application filed March 12, 1904. Serial No. 197,780. (No model.)

To [DZ], whom it may concern.-

Be it known thatI, AXEL R. HOLMEN, a citizen of Sweden, residing atColumbus, in the county of Franklin and State of Ohio, have invented acertain new and useful Improvement in Loading and Unloading Apparatus,of which the following is a specification.

My invention relates to an improvement in loading and unloadingapparatuses, and more particularly to that class known as vertical hoistand dump.

The object of the invention is to provide one or more pairs of bucketsarranged to be automatically dumped and so suspended and elevated thatthe weight of one bucket counterbalances that of the other and that onlysufficient power to overcome the inertia of the load is; required toraise the loaded bucket.

Finally, the object of the invention is to provide a device of the typeset forth that will be strong, durable, and eflicient and one in whichthe working parts will not be liable to get out of operative order.

With the above and other objects in view the invention consists of thenovel details of construction and operation, a preferable embodiment ofwhich is described in the specification and illustrated in the drawings,wherein- Figure 1 is a front elevation showing the application of theinvention. Fig. 2 is an elevation broken away to show the trippingblockand setting forth a portion of the loading-hopper. Fig. 3 is a verticalsectional view of the upper portion of the shaft, showing one of thebuckets in its unloading position and illustrating in dotted lines theposition of the bucket during the tripping operation. Fig. 4 is apartial plan view of one of the shafts, showing the bucket broken awayto disclose the latch; and Fig. 5 is a detail elevation of thetripping-block.

In the drawings the numeral 1 designates a pair of ordinaryelevator-shafts, which are connected across their tops by bars 2 andformed with housings 3. Operating in the shafts are buckets 4, adaptedto be raised and lowered by means of an endless chain 5, which has itsends fastened to eyebolts 6, supported between the beams 2. The chain isso arranged as to support the buckets one in a raised position and theother in a lowered position. The endless chain connected to one of theeyebolts 6 passes down the shaft and around a pulley 7 supported uponthe bucket 4, up the shaft across a pair of idle sheaves 8, and down andaround a driving-sprocket 9, suitably supported between the shafts uponthe cross-bars 10, and thence up the shafts and across a pair of idlesheaves 11, then down again and around the pulley 7 of the other bucket,the end of the chain being attached to the other eyebolt 6. It will thusbe seen that when one bucket is up the other is down, and that owing tothe differential arrangement of the sheaves and pulleys the buckets 4counterbalance one another, and that upon one rising the other islowered, motion being transmitted to the endless chain by the drivingsprocket or sheave 9. The eyebolts 6 are adjustably supported upon across-bar 12 by jam-nuts 13, whereby the tension of the chain may bevaried by tightening or loosening the nuts 13, thus raising or loweringthe said eyebolt. The bucket 4 is preferably formed of a suitable sheetmetal, having an inclined bottom 5 and a hinged door 14 at the lower endof the inclined bottom, closing an opening in the side of the bucket.The door is held in its closed position by a pivoted latch 15, engaginga lug 16, projecting from one of the wings 17 of the hinged door 14. Thepulleys 7 are supported centrally over the buckets by the bails l8.Guide-strips 19 are secured to the sides of the buckets 4 and embracethe side rails 20 of the shafts 1, whereby the bucket is held invertical alinement during its passage up and down the shaft. Atrippingblock 21, carrying a tripping-piece 22, is secured to one of therails 20 of each of the shafts and so arranged that the saidtrippingpiece 22 lies in the path of the latch 15 and the tripping-lug23, carried thereby. The tripping-piece 22 is formed with a shoulderportion 24, against which the lug 23 contacts upon the elevation of thebucket 4, thus tripping the latch 15 and disengaging the same from thelug 16, as clearly shown in dotted lines in Fig. 3, thus allowing thedoor 14 to open and rest against the shoes 25, which facilitates thegradual opening of the door as the bucket is further elevated until thebucket reaches its uppermost position, when the door will occupy theposition shown in full lines in Fig. 3-that is, substantially parallelwith the bottom 5 of the bucket 1. On the descent of the bucket thelatch 15, made of spring material, will slide along the inclined face ofthe tripping-piece 22, and thus clearly pass the same, the door beingclosed by the shoes 25, hooked over the rounded bar 26 and facing theelongated bearing-strips 27, which carry at their lower portions thebow-springs 28, which latter bear against the door, forcing the same toclose and the lug 16 to ride under and be held by the hooked end of thelatch 15. The springs 28 are secured at their upper ends to the strips27, having their lower ends free, thus allowing them to give graduallyto the pressure.

The bucket 4 in its loading position lies in a plane below theloading-hopper 29 and is loaded from the ordinary chute 30. (Shown inFig. 2.) Motion being imparted to the driving-sprocket 9, the endlesschain 5 is set in motion, and thus one bucket 4c is elevated while theother, having been emptied, is lowered. Upon reaching the position shownin dotted lines in Fig. 3 the lug 23 of the latch 15 engages under theshoulder 24 of the tripping-piece 22, thus disengaging the hooked end ofthe latch 15 from the lug 16 and allowing the door to rest against theshoes 25. As the bucket continues upwardly the door 14 continues to bearagainst the shoes 27, gradually opening until it rests on the roundedbar 26, as shown in Fig. 3, when it will lie in a plane substantiallyparallel to the inclined bottom 5 of the bucket, thereby delivering theload by force of gravity over the side of the housing 3. The motion ofthe drive-wheel 9 and chain 5 being reversed, the bucket is lowered, thedoor being gradually closed by its contact with the shoes 25 until itcontacts with the bow springs 28, which gently complete the closure ofthe door, causing the hooked ends of the latches 15 to engage the lugs16, and thus lock the door in its closed position.

It will be observed that the buckets occupy opposite positions withrelation to each other-that is, one bucket ascending while the otherdescends. It is also readily apparent that the buckets counterbalanceone another and that very little power is required to operate the same,as the force of gravity of the descending bucket tends to overcome theforce of gravitation of the ascending bucket, and thus only a slightincrease of the power required to overcome the inertia of the load isnecessary. It is to be further noted that by so arranging the buckets agreat saving of time is attained, as one bucket is being loaded whilethe other is unloading.

I do not desire to limit myself to the exact details of construction andoperation herein set forth, as I may make various changes in the samewithout departing from the spirit of my invention and wholly within thescope of my claims.

Having now fully described my invention, what I claim, and desire tosecure by Letters Patent, is-

1. The combination with a pair of shafts, and an elevating means, ofbuckets having discharge-openings supported by the elevating means,doors hinged to the buckets, means for locking the doors, means carriedby the shafts for tripping the door-locking means, and shoes arranged togradually open and close the doors.

2. The combination with a pair of shafts and elevating means, of bucketshaving inclined bottoms and discharge-openings, doors hinged over theopenings having laterallyprojecting lugs, latches carried by the bucketsand normally engaging the lugs, trippingblocks mounted on the shafts,angular tripping-cams carried by the blocks in the path of the latchesto trip the same, and means for gradually opening and closing saiddoors.

7 3. The combination with a pair of shafts and elevating means, ofbuckets having discharge-openings supported by the elevating means,doors hinged to the buckets, means for locking the doors, means carriedby the shafts for tripping the door-locking means and shoes havingresilient faces for gradually opening and closlng the doors.

AXEL R. HOLMEN.

In presence of M. B. SoHLnY, W. L. MORROW.

